A Tacoma grocery store owner accused of stealing at least $600,000 from a federal food-assistance program has been arrested in India after allegedly fleeing the US while awaiting court proceedings.
Manjit Singh Bedi, 65, was taken into custody Friday by Indian authorities working with the FBI, marking the fifth arrest connected to the bureau’s newly launched Most Wanted Fraudsters initiative. US authorities are now working to bring him back to face charges.
Bedi had been added to the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters list just days before his arrest.
The bureau says the naturalized US citizen operated Asian Grocery Store in Tacoma, Washington, where he allegedly carried out a scheme involving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits between March 2024 and June 2025.
Federal investigators accuse Bedi of using customers’ Electronic Benefit Transfer cards to conduct transactions that appeared to involve eligible food purchases.
Instead, investigators allege Bedi would swipe recipients’ EBT cards, give them cash and retain approximately half the value of the benefits for himself.
In one example described by authorities, a $200 benefits transaction allegedly resulted in a recipient receiving $100 in cash while the remaining $100 went to Bedi. Investigators allege the operation ultimately caused losses exceeding $600,000.
Bedi was eventually indicted on federal wire fraud and SNAP benefits fraud charges in the Western District of Washington.
Authorities initially allowed him to appear in court without being taken into custody. As part of his release conditions, Bedi was ordered to surrender his passport and remain in Washington state while the case proceeded.
The FBI alleges he violated those conditions and fled.
According to the bureau, Bedi drove across the border into Canada before making his way to India, despite having surrendered his passport.
A federal arrest warrant was issued May 21 after he was charged with violating the conditions of his supervision.
The FBI subsequently placed Bedi on its Most Wanted Fraudsters list and offered a reward of up to $150,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
Indian authorities located Bedi in Jalandhar, Punjab. Local police said he was apprehended in the Paragpur area Friday.
Fox News reported that the FBI worked with Indian authorities to secure the arrest and is now seeking Bedi’s return to the US.
The capture represents the fifth arrest attributed to the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters initiative since the program launched in June.
The list was created specifically to spotlight fugitives accused of major financial crimes and is separate from the FBI’s longstanding Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
As of Sept. 3, the FBI said 16 people had been added to the fraud-focused initiative since its creation, with four captured by that point. Bedi’s arrest brought the number of captures to five.
Fox reported that those five suspects are collectively accused of more than $2 billion in fraud and had spent nearly 4,000 combined days as fugitives.
“Five Most Wanted Fraudsters captured in just three months is a historic success for this initiative,” FBI Director Kash Patel told the outlet.
“The days of taking advantage of American taxpayers without consequence are over,” Patel added.
The FBI had previously described Bedi’s alleged conduct as exploiting benefits intended for vulnerable Americans.
W. Mike Herrington, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Seattle Field Office, said when Bedi was added to the list that money lost through benefits fraud is diverted from assistance intended to help people afford food, per Fox News.
US Department of Agriculture Inspector General John Walk accused Bedi of effectively turning his grocery store into a cash-conversion operation for federal food benefits and said authorities remained committed to pursuing suspects who steal taxpayer funds.
Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald also pointed to Bedi’s overseas arrest as evidence that federal authorities intend to pursue fraud defendants even after they leave the country.
Bedi remains accused, not convicted, of the underlying federal fraud charges. The FBI notes that allegations contained in an indictment must be proven in court and defendants are presumed innocent unless convicted beyond a reasonable doubt.
